Cash grants aiming to pump downtown's art

Real Estate Weekly, Dec 15, 2004

The Downtown Alliance and Lower Manhattan Cultural Council (LMCC) announced today the launch of their Cultural Capital Grant Program, which will provide challenge grants and technical assistance to cultural institutions engaged in performing arts and public programming interested in putting down roots in Lower Manhattan.

These grants are part of a dedicated and continuing effort to transform Lower Manhattan into a destination for arts and culture,

"The arts are a crucial economic development driver in any neighborhood and they are important for workers, businesses, and residents," said Carl Weisbrod, president of the Downtown Alliance. "This grant program addresses the need for a vital and growing arts sector throughout Lower Manhattan and provides immediate momentum at a time when other cultural initiatives are necessarily focusing on the long-term."

Capital grants up to $225,000 are being offered to assist small- to medium-sized performing arts institutions in the upgrade, renovation, and creation of performance space below Murray Street. These grants will be awarded on a contingent basis, requiring a 2:1 cash match before funds are released. Pre-development grants up to $50,000 will also be available for institutions in the early evaluation stage of relocation below Murray Street. Predevelopment funds may be used for site identification, feasibility studies, and preliminary design work.

"Lower Manhattan is poised at a moment of opportunity, with major redevelopments and residential expansions taking place," said Tom Healy, president of the LMCC. "Through this major new grant program, arts and cultural groups will be provided with critical funding to become a permanent part of the fabric of downtown."

Grant participants will also be offered the opportunity and encouraged to participate in a complimentary technical assistance program to further assist institutions in facilities project management and capital fundraising.

Letters of Interest (LOI) for initial review must be received by 5:00 pm, January 24, 2005. For grant guidelines and LOI procedure, contact Sigrid Peterson of the Alliance for Downtown New York at (212) 835-2753. Also, log onto web www.downtownny.com.